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Orchids for Biggles
Orchids for Biggles by W. E. Johns was first published in 1962 by Brockhampton. There have been 3 subsequent editions in the English language, with the most recent being the 1980 paperback edition by Knight Books. The events in the book take place in the early 1960s in South America. Synopsis A renegade British nuclear scientist has absconded with a stash of top secret documents and threatens to hand them over to Russia unless the British government pays a ransom of one million dollars. With three weeks left to comply, Biggles and Bertie are sent to track down the scientist and retrieve the papers from a remote town deep inside Amazonia. Plot Note: The sections below contain spoilers. In particular, the plot subpage (click here) has an extended summary of the narrative in the book Characters The Special Air Police *Air Commodore Raymond *Biggles *Bertie Lissie Friends and allies *Peter Fotherham - known locally as Don Pedro *José *Gaspard *Señor Vargas Others *Harald Neckel - also using the name Luis Salvador *Bogosoff *Dolores *Maria *Carlo Aircraft *Gadfly Places Visited *Cruzuado - Peruvian town at the tripoint border with Brazil and Bolivia **Villa Vanda **Hotel Comisaria **Bar Francisco **Casa Floresta *Rio Jurara *Manicore *Porto Velho - on the Rio Madiera, transit *Puerto Vecho - on the Rio Jurara Mentioned *Manaos (Manaus) Research Notes *The book contains a short foreword by W. E. Johns about orchids. *According to Biggles, the job "seems to be one in which he (Bertie) could play the dumb Englishman to advantage." But Bertie doesn't in this story. *"Ginger is too susceptible to fever for a locality where there is bound to be plenty of it...." See, for example, Biggles Goes Home. References to the past Incongruities Chronology Editions 1. Leicester: Brockhampton Press, 1962. 168 pages, frontispiec by Leslie Stead but no other illustrations. Green boards with cream lettering. *Colourful dust jacket, title in red, with author's name in white. A yellow gull wing flying boat overhead, a canoe with two men at lower left. Luxuriant vegetation all around frames the aircraft and canoe. Spine has a picture of a man in a wide brimmed hat. He is holding a rifle and wearing a bandolier. Logo "Brock Books" with a motif of a black terrier. Number 62 above it. *The first edition is not so rare, even those with a dust jacket in good condition. 2. London: Children's Book Club (by arrangement with Brockhampton Press), 1962. 168 pages. No illustrations. Blue boards. *Cover art shows a yellow flying boat flying over a canoe on a broad river. There are two men in the canoe. Bogosoff, in front, is in white and is bearded. Vegetation on river banks on either side. 3. Leicester: Brockhampton Press, 1969. 4. London: Hodder & Stoughton (Knight Books), 1975. Paperback. 158 pages. Cover shows an anaconda rearing its head. There is a silhouette of a flying boat at top left. Behind the anaconda is an outline of an orchid. 5. London: Hodder & Stoughton (Knight Books), 1980 reprint. Paperback. 158 pages. Cover shows a canoe with a man paddling. There is a 1910s era monoplane with a single pilot overhead. Headshot of Biggles on the top left. Category:Books Category:Biggles books Category:Edition research needed Category:Stub